Differential microRNA Profile in Operational Tolerance: A Potential Role in Favoring Cell Survival

Conclusions: We propose that epigenetics mechanisms involving microRNAs may integrate human transplantation tolerance mechanisms, and regulate key members of the cell death/survival signaling. miR-885-5p could favor cell survival in OT by diminishing the levels of CRADD/RAIDD and CASP3. Nonetheless, given the nature of any complex phenomenon in humans, only cumulative data will help to determine whether this microRNA differential profile may be related to the cause or consequence of operational tolerance. Introduction Despite its clinical success, allotransplantation still faces important challenges, such as preventing/treating chronic rejection (CR) and inducing immunotolerance. Nevertheless, a special group of transplant patients do not reject after stopping immunosuppressants, and preserve their immune competence. This phenomenon is called Operational Tolerance (OT). Studies on OT have mostly focused on the search for reliable OT biomarkers and determining potential underlying mechanisms (1–3). Several differential immunologic features have been reported for OT after renal transplantation, by our group and others, including the preservation of regulatory T (4, 5) and B cell (6, 7) numbers, contrasting with their loss in CR. Multiple mechanisms are believed to be involved in operational tolerance, but epigenetic mechanisms such as those exerted by microRNAs have only scarcely been investigated. MicroRNAs are short non-coding RNAs that are 22 to 24 nucleotides...
Source: Frontiers in Immunology - Category: Allergy & Immunology Source Type: research